Canton Names New Police Chief

CANTON, Ga. (AP) -- The city of Canton has named a new police chief months after the former chief resigned amid criticism over how his department handled the search for a missing girl who later turned up dead.

WSB-TV reports (http://bit.ly/IyHWCY ) that Robert Merchant, the former Altamone Springs, Fla., police chief, has been named Canton police chief. He was presented at a news conference Monday.

Former chief Jeff Lance was widely criticized for the way the initial search for Jorelys Rivera was handled after she was reported missing in December. A maintenance man at the apartment complex where the 7-year-old lived later pleaded guilty in her death.

City leaders say Merchant's application was one of 43 the city got for the job.AP-WF-05-07-12 1805GMT

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